Tsuna Can't Be This Cute
by kittyloaf
Summary: Tsuna runs into a bucket of Jusenkyo cursed spring water and gets turned into a girl. HAHAHAHAHAHA. Contains Haru from my other stories so that I can mess with Tsuna even more directly. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
1. Chapter 1

A twelve year old Tsunayoshi Sawada hopped on one foot through the door of his home while tugging on a loose shoe and barely holding a piece of toast in his mouth. He was already late on his first day of middle school, having overslept and misplaced his uniform and spilled juice on his socks. Due to this brisk pace, he misjudged the end of the landing and slipped off the corner of his house's front steps. He twisted in the air and landed on his butt but miraculously, the toast remained in his mouth.

"Maybe this means that the rest of the day will be better?" he hoped, choosing to believe that if his breakfast could survive disaster, then so could he. The clumsy boy had been called 'Useless Tsuna' all through elementary school but today was his first day at Namimori Middle School. He could leave that nickname behind and start fresh. He hoped that he might even make some friends this year.

Rising to his feet, Tsuna dashed toward school. Counting down the minutes on his watch, he prayed to the Kami that he wouldn't be late. Rumors of a demon who would severely punish anyone who broke the rules had trickled down among the elementary grade schoolers. He imagined some kind of oni with a giant club or a surly yakuza-type who would shoot bad kids or a giant dog or…

Lost in his imagination, Tsuna didn't notice the figure ahead of him. If he was paying attention, Tsuna would have noted that the figure in the long, black, hooded coat was extremely out of place. Who would wear such unusual clothing with such thick material in the middle of spring? And why would they be carrying a wooden bucket of water? Unfortunately, Tsuna was not paying attention and collided bodily with the mysterious person.

For a moment, everything was a jumble and then Tsuna found himself lying on the ground, having been judo thrown onto his back. A second later, he was soaked to the bone with unusually warm water that gave him a tingly feeling all over. To add insult to injury, the antique-looking wooden bucket landed on his stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

The figure in the black coat was in a martial arts stance, looking vaguely like he belonged in some kind of action film rather than being in Namimori. Once he realized he wasn't actually under attack, he looked down at his victim and handed Tsuna a towel that he seemed to pull from his coat sleeve.

Tsuna groaned and accepted the white bath towel, getting up to sitting position. After drying off his face and managing to stutter, "I-I'm s-sorry about that. Thanks for the towel?" he realized he couldn't see the figure's face under the coat hood.

Conversely, the young man in the black coat got a good look at Tsuna's face and howled with laughter, slapping his knee and doubling over from laughing too much. Holding his side with one hand, he eventually placed his other hand on Tsuna's shoulder and said, "Keep it. You'll be needing it." With that, he walked away, still chortling and muttering about needing some kind of replacement prank.

Once relatively dry, Tsuna checked the time on his watch and looked forlornly at the damp, half-eaten toast on the ground nearby. He sighed and started to walk to school. He was already going to be late and hungry. No reason to be tired too. It was only four steps before he realized something was very, very wrong.

Up until that point in life, Tsuna had been one-hundred percent confident that he was a guy. Now, Tsuna was zero percent confident and was starting to suspect that he had been turned into a girl. Yes, he had definitely become a girl. It was very, very obvious when Tsuna looked down at ...her wet shirt. Also, her clothes felt ...off... in a lot of other places too. Tsuna looked around but the mysterious person was gone.

Tsuna had never actually told her legs to stop walking at any point during this shocking revelation and eventually, she had reached the gates of Namimori Middle School. The gates were closed. Standing guard was a single student.

"What business do you have here?" Kyoya Hibari asked sternly, scaring the beejebus out of Tsuna.

"Hieeee, um, my name is S-sawada Tsunayoshi. It's supposed to b-be my first day," Tsuna said, gulping nervously.

"Why are you wearing the male uniform? All students should be wearing the appropriate uniform for their grade and gender." Kyoya's eyes narrowed ominously.

"I d-don't… It's the only uniform I have?" Tsuna answered nervously, not really knowing how to answer the upperclassman's question.

After a tense silence, Kyoya responded, "Go to the school office to receive a temporary uniform for today." Tsuna's response was to be petrified from fear. Kyoya growled, "Go NOW before I bite you to death." Presumably, Kyoya was threatening to use the pair of tonfa that he had just pulled out from behind his back.

Tsuna immediately ran through the small gap in the gate that Hibari was guarding, fleeing for her life. She only stumbled twice before managing to cross the yard and enter the school building. She found the shoe locker with her name and swapped her slightly damp and slightly too large shoes for indoor slippers.

Now that she was a safe distance away from certain death, she found herself asking one of two very pertinent questions. Although she probably should have considered the question of why she was currently female, her brain was currently concerned with continued survival and thus asking itself, "Where is the school office?"

She had apparently asked that question aloud to herself because a passing female student replied, "It's to the right, the first door after the stairs."

Tsuna's heart skipped a beat, partly from being surprised at the unexpected reply and partly because the girl who had answered her was the cutest, most beautiful girl she had ever seen. Tsuna was at a loss for words.

The female student smiled gently at Tsuna, despite the other students she had been walking with all looking kind of annoyed at the interruption, not wanting to be late to their first class after the opening ceremony assembly. She spoke, "My name is Sasagawa Kyoko. Are you lost?"

Someone muttered from behind Kyoko, "Don't bother yourself, Kyoko. That's No Good Tsuna. He's no good for anything."

For a few seconds, Kyoko tapped her finger to her lips as if she were considering a math problem before she gave Tsuna another bright, sparkly smile and said, "You should hurry. Homeroom is going to start soon."

Tsuna simply nodded dumbly as she watched Kyoko walk away in a small group of students. She continued to stand there in a dreamy haze until she sensed a killing intent approaching her from behind. "Hieeeeee," she screeched as she ran toward the school office.

Once safely inside the office, Tsuna took a moment to catch her breath despite the receptionist silently observing the awkward first year.

The desk lady finally asked in an obviously disinterested voice, "Can I help you…?"

"Um...I d-don't…"

"Yes…?" The woman's impatience was growing.

"I don't know...where I'm supposed to be?" Tsuna offered, half as a statement and half as a plea for help.

The woman studied the mousy, brown-haired girl who was wearing a wrinkled, disheveled boys' uniform. The girl's hair was matted down as if it hadn't dried properly, curling up at the ends around her neck. It was also apparent that the girl wasn't wearing a bra under the long sleeved shirt. The entire effect was as pitiable as a wet puppy who had run away from just being bathed.

The lady sighed and asked, "I take it that you missed student orientation last week?"

"Huh?" Tsuna had no idea what she was talking about.

"What is your name?" The exasperation in her voice seemed to condense in the air around her words into a noticeable chill.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi," she answered sounding unconfident.

The receptionist's eyebrow rose but instead of saying anything, she instead fingered through a box of student identification cards. Eventually, she plucked one out of the stack with Tsuna's name on it. There was indeed a resemblance between the girl across the counter and the identification photo but it didn't quite look like the same person.

The woman asked with suspicion, "Are you sure you're Sawada Tsunayoshi and not his sister?"

Tsuna gulped. "I-I'm sure," she answered, sounding like she had just shoplifted.

"Are you a boy or a girl?" the receptionist asked bluntly, giving into her curiosity.

There was a part of Tsuna that wanted to just go with the flow and pretend to be a girl because that's what she was right now. There wouldn't have to be any awkward explanations if she just pretended her student ID simply had a typo on it. But there was a stronger part of Tsuna that was attached to the identity of his true, male self that he had grown up with over the last twelve years. Besides, all he had to do was find that weird person and then he could get turned back into a guy. Hopefully.

"I'm a boy," Tsuna said, on the verge of crying from stress and emotional breakdown.

Still suspicious, the receptionist kept her theories to herself and gave Tsuna 'his' student ID and said, "You're late for homeroom. Head to room 3-C on the third floor."

"T-thank you," Tsuna said with a bow before leaving quickly.

The woman thought to herself, "In any case, the disciplinary committee will deal with it."

* * *

Tsuna did her best to open the classroom door as silently as possible. Unfortunately, the sliding door was stuck in its tracks. It didn't help that Tsuna was a little bit physically weaker as a girl, with a comparatively slender upper body and arms. She pushed harder and harder, putting the weight of her body behind her efforts until eventually the door gave away and slammed open with a thunderous crash. Tsuna barely managed to stay standing by retaining her grip on the edge of the door.

The entire class turned to look at the newcomer. The teacher sneered at the rude student that had interrupted his first class of the school year, "Yes? Can we help you?"

About half the class had come from the same elementary school as Tsuna and realized that they would have to endure useless, no-good Tsuna bringing them down for the rest of the year in every activity, competition, and test score aggregation. But some astute student who had moved from another town pointed out excitedly, "It's a girl!"

Tsuna could feel the eyes of everyone in the room turn to do a double take at her. Her heart was in her throat and she didn't know what to do as the class began to gossip instantly, saying things like "I didn't know Tsuna was a girl!" or "The ugly duckling becomes a swan," or "Dang, Tsuna definitely had a growth spurt over break."

"Quiet!" demanded the stuffy, middle aged man standing in front of the blackboard. He pushed up his glasses and told Tsuna, "You can take that desk over there. And since you've chosen to arrive in the middle of introductions, you can go ahead and introduce yourself now."

Tsuna's desk was at the back corner near the windows. Every step she took was like trudging through quicksand. From the corner, she could tell the entire class was interested in the new female student.

"Um...I'm Tsuna...yoshi. Sawada Tsunayoshi. Um...o-okay," she withered, sitting down immediately and making herself as small as humanly possible. Small murmurs and whispers surged through the rest of the students.

* * *

At lunch, she was surrounded at her desk by over a dozen nosy students. "Are you really No-Good Tsuna?" "You got really pretty since elementary school." "Why are you dressed like a boy?"

Seeing as Tsuna didn't really have any answers to give, she just nodded along and gave non-committal shrugs and "I guess so" replies. At least the mob had enough decency to let her buy a sandwich from the lunch store before they descended upon her. In between dodging questions and taking nibbles of bread, Tsuna thought to herself, "Maybe this might not be so bad after all?"

And then she realized that she needed to pee. And at that point, Tsuna decided that she must regain her manhood at all costs. After all, physical education classes began later this week. If she had to change clothes with a room full of girls (for example, that Kyoko girl she met this morning) then...well, it just wouldn't be right. That would be crossing a line that Tsuna wouldn't be able to uncross.

"Tsuna, you have a nosebleed," someone pointed out.

The frightened Tsuna bolted from her chair with her hand to her nose and fled to the nurse's office. Upon arrival, she was fortunate to find there was a private bathroom there she could use for the time being. At least until she found a way to go back to normal.

Once her nosebleed was settled, she took a minute to look at herself in the mirror. The girl looking back at her was actually kind of cute. Her face was mostly the same except a bit smaller, but it worked in such a way that she had gone from kinda goofy to kind of adorable. Her eyes and hair were the same honey and chestnut brown. But her hair was a little less spiky and fell down more readily than before. It was still soft but it felt smoother and because of the change in texture, it naturally rested in a style halfway between what his normal hair style and a bob cut like his mother.

The rest of her body was kind of attractive too. Male Tsuna didn't have any real bulk anywhere and that body type carried over to her female self. Except for her chest, which was developed enough that while not overly large, with the way her shirt wasn't buttoned at the top, wearing the boys' uniform gave her a bit of sexy tomboy appeal with a tiny bit of cleavage. Thinking about it made the weight on her chest feel heavier.

In a few years, female Tsuna could probably develop into a knock out beauty. There were a few hints of it showing now though. Tsuna didn't know whether to be grateful or annoyed that she had been transformed into an attractive female. She supposed it was better than the alternative. But she'd rather just go back to being a boy.

* * *

The rest of the day had gone somewhat quietly, but only because she had ran out of school immediately after her last class and avoided the conga line of students that would come to gawk at her. She was definitely not used to getting so much attention and she felt mentally exhausted.

Determined to find any clue that would fix her problem, Tsuna arrived at the crossing where she had run into that mysterious figure.

"Yo."

Tsuna whirled around, tripped on a familiar wooden bucket, and crashed onto the ground.

"No need to prostrate yourself before me." The person in the black coat from earlier that morning was sitting on a concrete fence about five meters above the sidewalk. He hopped down and landed effortlessly in front of Tsuna with hardly a sound like he was some kind of superhero or movie martial artist.

"You! You're that guy from earlier! Change me back!" Tsuna pleaded, scrambling to her knees.

The figure pulled back the hood of his cloak, revealing a young man with long, dark red hair wearing an eyepatch over his right eye. He grinned and tilted his head diabolically. "Why should I? You're the one who ran into me and spilled that water all over yourself. I'll have you know that bucket of water came all the way from the mountains of China and I doubt you'd be able to replace it."

"What? The bucket is right here! Just get yourself some more water and change me back!" Tsuna was hysterical by this point.

The red-head shook his head, "Tsk, tsk. It's not the bucket that's important but the magical spring water that was in the bucket that was important. It turns you into whatever last drowned in the spring. In this case, it turned you into a girl."

Tsuna was in shock. "No, no, this is just a dream, right?"

"Afraid not, kiddo. But I tell ya what. I'll be in town for a little while doing some consulting business and I don't really have anything to do. If you can beat me in a fight, I'll go get you the cure to the curse. How's that sound?" he offered amusedly as if he had offered to buy Tsuna lunch to make up for turning her into a girl.

"A fight? I don't know how to fight…" Tsuna replied fearfully.

The eccentric redhead simply shrugged and said, "Standing offer. Take as much time as you need and you can try as many times as you want. I don't really care. I'm just bored."

"Who are you?" Tsuna asked.

"Name is Ikari Haru, shinobi for hire. Just call me Haru. What's your name?" Haru extended a hand to the girl on the ground.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi." Not sensing any danger, Tsuna accepted the helping hand to get back on her feet.

"Well, Sawada-san," Haru spoke amicably, "Let me give you some advice for now. Go home and relax and take a moment to mull over everything in the bath. Things might not be as bad as you think. Oh, and let me give you something…" Like a magician, Haru pulled out a ring.

"What is it for?" Tsuna asked, receiving the jewelry.

"It helps out people like you. I made a bunch of them and I have a couple left over so you can have one too."

"What do you mean by 'people like me'?" Tsuna hesitated, not putting it on but just holding it in his upturned palm.

The one-eyed teenager gave a creepy grin as he said, "Cursed people. Anyways, just think of it like a good luck charm. I promise it will be helpful."

Tsuna just looked at the present. The metal ring seemed like it was glowing orange slightly but it might have just been a trick of the afternoon light reflecting off the metal. Tsuna began to ask, "But what should I...do…"

Haru was gone. He had silently disappeared in the moment Tsuna had taken her eyes off him.

"What do I do about my mom?" She asked but received no answer. All she could do was kick the dumb water bucket she had tripped over earlier, hurting her foot in the process of sending it a few meters down the street.

* * *

Once home, Tsuna tried to open the door as quietly as possible but his mother, Nana Sawada, still heard the sound from the kitchen.

She asked from the kitchen, "How was your day, Tsuna-kun?" in between chopping vegetables and tending to a pot on the stove.

"It was fine, mom," Tsuna shouted as she ran up the stairs to hide in her room.

"Are you sure? Your voice sounds kind of weird…" she asked with concern. But when she received no reply, she assumed it was just normal preteen behavior and went back to cooking dinner for the time being.

Tsuna dove under the covers of her bed and hoped that today was just a dream and that tomorrow would be the actual first day of middle school and that everything would be normal and...that…

* * *

A couple hours later, Tsuna was startled awake by a knock at her door.

"Tsuna, dinner is ready," Nana spoke from outside.

Tsuna hoped with all her might that her mother wouldn't come into her room. "Uh, I'm not feeling well. Let me rest for a little bit longer?"

"...alright. Are you sure you aren't coming down with something? You sound a little off."

"I'll be okay. Just save me something to eat, please."

"Fine. Then at least let me draw you a bath. It'll be ready in about ten minutes."

"Thanks, mom."

Tsuna vaguely recalled some kind of advice about relaxing. Perhaps a bath would help her nerves?

* * *

Trina popped her head out the door to her room, making sure the coast was clear. Fortunately, her mother was nowhere in sight.

She dashed into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her, feeling like a thief in her own home. Now came the part of the day she had been dreading since she arrived home: confronting the grim reality of her new body.

She was definitely a little shorter and smaller than when she was a boy. Even though her waist was thinner, she had gained enough mass in other places such that her pants were in no danger of falling down on their own.

Tsuna closed her eyes and stripped down as fast as she could until she realized that she would actually have to be able to see to clean herself. With a huge gulp, she opened the bathing room door with one arm while hiding her breasts with the other arm out of newfound female modesty.

Intentionally refusing to think too much about anything whatsoever, Tsuna went through the ingrained motions of preparing to enter the bathtub, sitting on a stool and dumping a bucket of cool water over her head. "Ah, cold!" It was embarrassing how feminine her voice sounded just then despite no one else being around to hear it.

The hand-held shower head also sprayed cold water, rinsing away soap and shampoo. It took too long for warm water to come out and it wasn't worth the hassle of getting scalded and frozen repeatedly to find the perfect temperature when the heavenly bliss of the furo was waiting a meter away.

"Breasts are really soft," Tsuna couldn't help but think to herself, channeling her innate male fascination with female anatomy. Trying to ignore how stupidly obvious that sounded in her head, she quickly slipped into the bathtub and let out a sigh of relaxation. "Maybe it wouldn't hurt to examine the rest of my body…" Tsuna considered until his brain had to suddenly stop and reevaluate his situation.

Apparently, after getting into the bathtub, Tsuna had turned back into a guy. He didn't really notice it happening but he immediately stood straight up in excitement, spilling water over the edge of the bath. "Yes! I'm a guy again!" he shouted, probably loud enough his mom might overhear that disturbing sentence. "Eep," he squeaked in a much smaller voice.

* * *

Once he was dry and clothed in his pajamas, Tsuna tugged on his desk drawer and rummaged around for the ring he had received earlier. He held it close to his desk lamp, pinching it around the edges with his fingers so he could see the words written around the inside. Unfortunately, it seemed to be english so Tsuna had no idea what it meant. "Cast in the name of God, ye not guilty."

Otherwise, it was a plain silver band that would glow warmly for a few seconds whenever it came in contact with his skin. Perhaps foolishly, Tsuna slipped it on his middle finger to see if it did anything else. Close to a best case scenario, nothing exploded nor vanished nor did anything interesting happen whatsoever. The ring wouldn't even glow unless he took it off and put it back on again.

"Good luck charm, hm…" Certainly the ring was just as mysterious as its creator but Tsuna figured it might actually have some hidden use besides being a terrible mood ring so he decided to keep wearing it. It fit perfectly and was kind of nice looking. And it was nice to get a present from someone who wasn't his family for the first time in his life.

All in all, today hadn't been THAT bad. He had been treated more nicely in one day then the entirety of his elementary school experience. Admittedly, he had also been a girl for exactly one day and that sadly was probably not a coincidence. It was probably for the best that he turned back into a guy, however. He didn't really think he could handle all that weirdness and excitement in his life. Maybe the school would believe that he had switched with someone else for the day as a prank?

He lay in bed and stared at the ring on his finger. Maybe tomorrow would be a better day? After all, how could it possibly get worse than getting turned into a girl and meeting some crazy magic homeless person?

* * *

The next morning, Tsuna said farewell to his mother and closed the front door. It was a bright, beautiful, sunny day. He had woken up on time, had a delicious traditional Japanese breakfast, and was carrying a shiny new book bag for his new school books. It was a great start to his second day at school.

Except with a peal of thunder, the sky poured an intense but brief spring shower upon Tsuna. It was the kind of rain that lasts only a few minutes and ignores the fact the sun is still shining obliviously the entire time.

Tsuna would have ordinarily ignored the rain since he was in such a good mood but within a few seconds of being in the rain, Tsuna had turned into a girl and furthermore, lost all her clothes which left her completely naked outside her house. "HIEEEEEEEE?!"

She ran back inside her home and slammed the door shut behind her. Her heart was racing like she was a fugitive on the run.

"Tsuna, is that you?" Nana Sawada asked, stepping out of the kitchen into the hallway to see a naked, bewildered girl that vaguely resembled her son.

"Uh...h-hi, mom?" Tsuna said weakly while still covering her naked bits with her arms.

"Oh...Tsuna...Mama always wanted a daughter!" Nana said happily, giving Tsuna a big hug.

Tsuna chose that moment to faint.


	2. Chapter 2

Tsuna woke up in her bed, the sheets pulled over her naked body. In a daze, she wondered if she had dreamt the past 24 hours but a quick check under her blanket confirmed that she indeed was still female.

"Tsuna, are you awake? How are you feeling?" Nana Sawada asked as she gently knocked on the door and entered Tsuna's bedroom. In her arms was a bundle of clothes. "I brought you some of my old clothes that might fit, just in case you would want them."

Tsuna jerked upright and screamed "Hieeeee! Wait, I can explain!" before realizing she was still naked and pulling her blanket over her chest. "Eeeeeee!"

Nana put down the clothes and sat on the edge of Tsuna's bed. "I've called the school and told them you will be staying home today, so don't worry about missing class. I want you to know that your mother loves you very much and no matter what you're going through, I will always love you and be here for you. So won't you please tell me what's going on?" she asked with the gentle, accepting love of a mother.

Tsuna's breathing gradually slowed down and she realized there wasn't any point in hiding anything from her mother. Nana waited patiently for her 'daughter' until Tsuna finally broke the silence and explained, "I ran into a weird person and got cursed to turn into a girl, I think. I turned back last night but I turned into a girl again this morning...when I got wet from the rain. Maybe that's what triggers it?"

"Are you okay though? It doesn't hurt or anything, does it?" Nana asked, concerned solely for Tsuna's safety.

"No, mom, I'm fine. It's just really embarrassing," Tsuna explained, turning slightly red.

"I'm glad you're okay." Nana gave the cursed girl a hug and stood up to show off some of the dresses she had picked out. "I haven't worn these since I was your age but it should do until you get your own clothes. We'll have to get you some underwear and bras too. I think you're past the point of getting by with training bras."

"Mom! No, no, that's okay. I'm going to find that weird guy. He said there was a cure!" Tsuna protested, shaking one hand in front of her while the other held the blanket over her chest.

Nana pouted, "Aw, but you'd look lovely in this sundress! And your hair looks so pretty as a girl." With a wink, she added, "I'm sure that if you tried, you could have all the boys at school wrapped around your finger."

"I don't want anyone wrapped around my finger! I just want to go back to normal. Until then, I can just wear my normal clothes." Tsuna wrapped the blanket around her to look in her dresser for something to wear.

Nana sighed in disappointment. "I suppose. But you're still coming with me to go bra shopping. It's not right for a girl your age to not wear a bra. It sends the wrong message."

"But I'm not a girl!" Tsuna argued, dreading the prospect of buying lingerie with Nana Sawada.

The older woman simply pointed to the mirror in Tsuna's room, silencing her new daughter who could only manage a fearful gulp in reply.

* * *

Tsuna was dressed in a hooded sweatshirt and sweatpants, standing at the threshold of the women's undergarment store with his mother. He was grateful that it was still before noon, meaning that everyone he knew would be at school.

A saleswoman approached the mother-daughter pair and asked, "Can I help you find anything?"

Nana's eyes lit up with excitement, "Why, yes!" She pointed to the girl next to her. "Tsuna needs some proper underthings."

"MOM, don't tell her my name!"

"She doesn't know her bra size either so could you measure her, please?" Nana explained confidently.

"Certainly, ma'am," the woman replied. "Tsuna, was it? Please follow me."

Tsuna tried to not stare at the mannequins displaying matching bra and panty sets as she followed the woman to the fitting rooms in the back of the store. She was breathing through her teeth, unable to calm down from the fear that someone might eventually learn that Tsuna had tried on women's underwear.

"Alright, Tsuna, my name is Himiko. We'll set you up in this room," she explained as she unlocked the stall door to a spacious, tastefully furnished dressing room. Honestly, Tsuna had been expecting a thin curtain hiding a tiny stall, not a large partitioned area that could hold three or four people easily.

Nana asked, "Would you like me to stay with you, Tsuna?"

The brown-haired girl looked back at her mother, "Um...I...I guess?"

Once inside the fitting room, Tsuna stood in front of a tall mirror. Her mother was sitting on a ottoman behind her and the saleswoman pulled out a length of tape measure.

"Alright, Tsuna, I'm going to measure your chest, if that's okay with you? Can you move your arms for me?" As Tsuna obliged and raised her arms slightly, the woman slipped the tape measure under Tsuna's bust and pulled it taut. "Hm, about 60…" she mumbled before she repeated the process around Tsuna's breasts. "Maybe a C?"

Nervously, Tsuna asked the lady, "Do I have to take off my clothes?"

"I think I've got a decent idea of what we're working with. Let me bring you something to try on first and if it doesn't fit then maybe we'll measure again." Himiko smiled and continued, "I can tell you're anxious about getting your first bra. But I want to promise you that there's nothing to be scared about."

Tsuna nodded and Nana simply smiled happily.

The woman was only gone for a couple minutes before she returned, knocking on the door and saying, "I brought you a few selections of our basic styles to try on. I'll be back to check on you soon." She hung a few hangers over the door from which some simple, nude bras hung.

Tsuna picked one randomly and turned to his mother, "I don't really know how this works…"

In her typical gentle and motherly voice, Nana replied, "Don't worry. Get undressed and I'll help you put it on."

It only took three tries to get Tsuna's arms and head in their proper places relative to the undergarment. The girl was not confident that she would ever be able to put on a brassiere on her own.

"Tsuna, you look very nice," Nana said. In the mirror, Tsuna could see what her mother was talking about. Whereas male Tsuna would be considered skinny and short, the same body type on a female Tsuna produced a lithe and slender body. The bra emphasized her chest enough to add a sexy factor to her cuteness that was embarrassingly attractive and caused Tsuna to blush from being self-conscious as she studied her own reflection.

"I guess so…" Tsuna admitted. "But it's actually kind of tight...you know...around the chest."

Nana giggled. "Don't worry, dear. We'll get that sorted out. You remind me of myself when I was your age. I had a lot of suitors back then, before I met your father."

"I'm glad I don't have to worry about that," Tsuna replied.

"If you say so, dear…"

* * *

"Hey, you! Turn me back into a guy!" Tsuna demanded, yelling at the weird magic ninja person who was walking on a fence above the sidewalk. She was dressed in male clothes: a t-shirt, sports jacket with the number 27 on it, a ballcap, and jeans.

"Shouldn't you be in school right now?" the older teenager in the black coat asked, stopping to let Tsuna catch up with him.

Tsuna blushed as she considered what she had been doing instead of going to school. She had to admit to herself that her mother had been right that she needed a bra. She had declined panties, refusing to surrender that bit of her manhood and choosing to continue wearing boxers, but having support for her chest was actually more comfortable than going without.

Haru literally defied gravity and walked down the chain-link fence. He showed Tsuna a distinctly Cheshire Cat-like grin while standing horizontally. "Are you sure you don't just want to stay like that forever? You make for a pretty cute girl, ya know. And you seem to be enjoying it..."

"No, I'm not. Turn me back now!" Tsuna shouted with her fists clenched at her sides.

"Fine," Haru said, standing on terra firma, as he pulled a water balloon out of his sleeve and threw it directly at Tsuna. Tsuna was soaked with very warm water when the projectile exploded, but he was male again. Also, he was now wearing the school uniform that he had been wearing that morning before he had been caught in the rain. "If you want the cure though, I'll go get it for you if you beat me in a fight. I haven't had a decent opponent in a while."

Tsuna was confused. "What do you mean by cure? You turned me back into a guy…"

Haru rolled his left eye, the one not covered by an eyepatch, and groaned, "Yeah, and you'll turn back into a girl if you get splashed with cold water." Seeing that Tsuna was in shock, he continued explaining, "Hot water - guy. Cold water - girl. I thought you'd figure that out by now."

"And the ring…" Tsuna said, rubbing the plain jewelry on his finger.

"An invention I'm quite proud of. Makes your clothes change with you. At least you figured out that part on your own," Haru explained with disdain.

"But what's the cure though?" Tsuna asked.

Haru yawned before replying, "Spring water from the spring of drowned young man will cancel out the curse of the spring of drowned girl."

"And where can I get that?"

Haru folded his hands behind his head, growing increasingly bored. "I already told you yesterday. The cursed springs are in a remote mountain range in China. It takes at least two weeks of walking on foot through forests full of deadly animals to reach it. I don't recommend trying to find it unless you can fight off at least a dozen tigers by yourself."

Tsuna's face froze in an expression of pallid horror.

Haru continued, "It could be worse. You could be cursed to turn into a duck or a pig or an octopus monster. Honestly, you got off kinda easy as far as curses go."

Tsuna swallowed the lump in his throat and summoned a sliver of courage, enough to ask, "You said you'd cure me if I can beat you in a fight though?"

"Yes, I did. I'm gonna warn you now that you'll probably have more luck winning against the tigers than with me as your opponent."

"W-what kind of fight?" Tsuna asked nervously, despite wanting to curl into a ball and cry in despair.

"One-on-one duel sounds about right. Just tell me when and where and I'll take you on. First to yield loses. I'll even let you try as many times as you want," Haru explained as he stroked his fingers across his scalp to pull his long, red hair back, impressed with his own generosity.

"I don't know how to fight though," Tsuna complained.

Haru put his hands in his coat pockets and said confidently, "Let's see what you've got. Go ahead and punch me. Give me your best shot."

Tsuna made a fist with his right hand and pulled back his arm, not really knowing what he was doing.

"Tsuna-chan, you want to bend your thumb across your fingers or you'll hurt yourself. Also, bring your other hand up," Haru explained, using an open palm to guide Tsuna's left arm up to chest level, "for defense and balance." He walked to Tsuna's side and nudged the younger boy's feet into a fighting stance. "Keep one foot forward and one foot back and bend your knees slightly. You won't get any power if you're standing straight."

Confused, Tsuna asked, "Why are you helping me? Aren't I supposed to be fighting you?"

Haru laughed, "As if you have any chance of beating me. But I don't mind teaching you if you're interested in learning. Like I said, I'm just looking for something to do to kill time. And I think maybe you have some potential. It could be fun in an 'attaching a chainsaw to a Roomba' kind of way."

Tsuna punched the air in front of himself. "How's that?" he asked.

"Okay, maybe I was wrong about the potential. But if you want to get stronger, meet me at the park tomorrow after school. For now, I gotta get going to work."

Tsuna frowned at the implied insult. But he was curious enough to ask, "What do you do for work?"

Haru pulled a giant squeaky, toy mallet from behind his back. It had flashing lights and buttons in the handle. "I told you I'm a consultant. But today, I'm on tech support duty. There are some bugs that need to be taken care of."

Unable to understand anything Haru had said, nor why he was holding a giant toy hammer, Tsuna decided maybe he was better off not knowing and chose to leave the insane redhead to his own affairs.


	3. Chapter 3

On Tsunayoshi's third day of middle school, the brunet clambered down the stairs for breakfast, only to come across his mother opening a package.

"Morning, mom! What's in the box?" Tsuna asked, sitting down at the dining table. He was fully dressed and ready for his third attempt at attending middle school as a guy.

"Oh, Tsuna! Look at this. They sent you a school uniform to wear," Nana Sawada answered, holding up a female student uniform neatly wrapped in plastic.

As if startled by a ghost, Tsuna fell backward in his chair. He scooted away from the offending clothing like it was some kind of cursed object. "I'm not wearing that! No way!" he vehemently declined.

"But you would look so cute in it! Won't you wear it for Mama?" the Sawada matriarch pleaded.

"Ack!" Tsuna exclamed as he bumped his head on the side table behind him as he was trying to get up. The flower vase above him tipped over and spilled about a liter of water onto his lap. Faster than a blink of the eye, Tsuna's clothes vanished and the boy was replaced by a girl.

The previous evening, Tsuna had stripped naked before entering the bath in order to change back into her male form. She had forgotten, however, that the enchanted ring she wore would change her clothes to whatever she was wearing last time her water-based curse activated. Because she hadn't taken the time to reapply clothing to her female self, she was presently wet, female, and completely naked.

Nana Sawada's eyes gleamed deviously as she approached her naked female daughter with a brand new female uniform. Tsuna desperately scanned the room for escape routes but found none. The brunette realized that her fate was sealed and decided to do her best to endure the ignominy of being her mother's dress-up doll. She supposed it was better than being naked, after all.

* * *

"I see you're still wearing that ring I gave you," a figure wearing a long, hooded black coat said as Tsuna reached the intersection where he had first met Haru Ikari.

Tsuna raised his right hand to look at the aforementioned metal band on his middle finger. "Thanks, I guess?" Tsuna replied.

"Am I going to see you later for fighting lessons?" Haru asked, pulling down his hood and shaking out a long red pony tail. The boy was lying across the top of a concrete fence, a few meters above the ground.

"I don't know…" Tsuna replied. "Is it going to be hard?"

"Oh, definitely. You can look forward to buckets of pain, sweat, and tears," Haru said proudly. "But I promise you'll get a lot stronger from it."

Tsuna hesitated to answer. All he really wanted was a normal middle school life. Although he wanted a cure for his curse, he wasn't particularly interested in learning how to fight. And Tsuna wasn't really sure that he was capable of that kind of thing. All his life, he had been called names like "No-Good Tsuna" or "Useless Tsuna" and not without reason.

Impatiently, Haru explained, "Just think about it for now. Here's my phone number if you need to contact me." He passed a folded note down to Tsuna without getting up.

Tsuna stuffed the note into his pockets. "Do you really think I have potential?" he asked doubtfully. He had never demonstrated potential in anything before, much less fighting.

Haru bit his lip before answering, "It's less about what I think...and more important what you want for yourself."

"I don't think...I don't like fighting," Tsuna decided, speaking to himself just as much as he was speaking to this potential mentor.

"Whatever. Girls are cuter than guys anyways. But now I'm curious what your girl side is wearing today…" Haru said as he pulled out a yellow and green super soaker out of thin air. As he primed the water gun, pumping at inhuman speed, Haru assured Tsuna, "Don't worry, this won't hurt...much."

Tsuna ducked under the first shot, screaming, "Hieeeee!" as he crouched down with his hands on his head. A solid rod of water passed above him at nearly supersonic speed which blasted a small crater into the sidewalk behind him.

"Dang, I'll have to fix that later," muttered the insane shinobi. "Okay, be a good boy and stand still, Tsuna." Haru's target had enough good sense to be already running away by the time the second shot was ready.

Somehow, Tsuna had evaded all the high-powered water gun shots and remained dry. He had managed to escape the older boy, who had stopped chasing him after a few blocks. Tsuna suspected that Haru wasn't trying particularly hard to aim properly, given that the mysterious boy had missed more times than an Imperial stormtrooper.

Tsuna stopped for a moment to catch his breath, panting heavily with his hands on his knees. Curiously, he could hear a ticking sound begin nearby. He looked around but couldn't see any clocks anywhere. Suddenly, there was a spraying sound as dozens of automatic sprinklers began shooting water along the sidewalk. "HIEEEEEEE!"

* * *

Tsuna stood at the gates of Namimori Middle School as a girl, wearing a slightly damp female uniform. She was racking her brain trying to think of where she might find some hot water before class started.

"Do not loiter in my presence," growled the scariest disciplinary committee member, Kyoya Hibari.

Tsuna spun on her heels and screamed. She tried to back away from the second year prefect who had been standing behind her but ended up tripping on her own feet and falling on her behind.

Hibari's eyes narrowed to slits as he looked down at the clumsy girl without deigning to lower his head. He readied a single retractable tonfa in his hand. "Go to class. Now."

The terrified girl ran as fast as she could into the safety of the school building, tears in her eyes as she feared for her life.

"Pathetic," Hibari grumbled.

* * *

"Tsuna-chan, you look nice today!" Kyoko said as she passed by Tsuna at the shoe lockers. Kyoko gave the girl a bright, sunny smile. "Oops, I forgot my manners. Is it okay if I call you Tsuna-chan?"

Tsuna eventually managed to make her mouth do mouth things and finally managed to reply, "S-sure, Sasagawa-san!"

Kyoko bounced on her heels happily. "Then you should call me by my first name too."

Tsuna-chan blushed very strongly. "O-okay, Kyoko-chan," she said, too embarassed to look Kyoko in the eye.

"I was worried when you didn't come to school yesterday. I thought maybe you had gotten in trouble or something," Kyoko said, leaning forward to meet Tsuna's shy, downward gaze.

Tsuna opened her locker and pulled out a pair of indoor slippers. "No...I didn't get in trouble. It's just that my mom found out…"

Putting her fingers over her mouth in a delicately feminine way, Kyoko asked with a mischevious giggle and a commiserative levity, "Oh, no! What did she do?"

Tsuna blushed even harder and said with some amount of exasperation, "She made me go shopping for clothes with her."

Kyoko couldn't hold in her giggles and let out a small burst of full on laughter. "Aw, that's too bad! I thought it was really cool when you showed up to school wearing the guys' uniform."

Tsuna placed her outdoor shoes (Her mother was very meticulous in her dress-up outfits.) into her shoe locker and replied, "I can't believe I ended up wearing the girls' uniform after all."

There was a gleam in Kyoko's eye. "Why do you say that?" she asked.

Tsuna shrugged and answered, "...I just think I'm better suited for the guys' uniform, I guess."

Kyoko smiled in a warm way that made Tsuna's heart flutter. "I think you look cute either way, Tsuna-chan. Anyways, I have to get to class. It's a shame we're not in the same class this year. Maybe next year… In any case, I'm glad I got to see you again. I'll see you around."

Tsuna dumbly waved goodbye as she watched her crush walk away. She clutched her chest in excitement from having had an actual conversation with a girl, moreover a decently amicable conversation with the cutest girl in school with whom she was now on a first-name basis. All of the bad things that happened to her that morning were suddenly erased and all that was left on Tsuna's mind as she wandered into her classroom was how pretty Kyoko was when she smiled.

* * *

Tsuna wanted to die. She was in a room full of girls undressing and changing into their gym clothes. The boys had gone to the neighboring classroom and the girls from that class had joined Tsuna's class in order to get ready for PE.

Tsuna looked down at herself and contemplated her options. She immediately ruled out suicide as impractical. Running away was a possibility. Maybe if she told the teacher she wasn't feeling well?

A familiar voice asked, "Tsuna-chan, are you okay?"

"Kyoko-chan? What are you doing here?" Tsuna asked nervously.

"The same thing as you. I'm getting ready for gym," she said factually as she removed her blouse.

Tsuna covered her eyes and turned around for fear of seeing something she was not supposed to see.

A bratty voice called out, "What's the matter, Sawada? Maybe you'd feel more comfortable on the boys' side?" That earned a few snickers from the rest of the group.

"Just ignore them, Tsuna-chan," Kyoko said with a hint of frustration.

Tsuna gulped and pulled her bow off her neck. She gripped the ribbon hard as she decided to just endure the humiliation and get it over with. The brunette took a deep breath and started to undo the buttons of her blouse, thinking to herself, " _It can't be that much different than going to a pool or an onsen."_

Tsuna could hear the other girls talking about her behind her back. "Wow, Sawada had a crazy growth spurt over break." "I bet the boys aren't going to be calling her Useless Tsuna anymore." "Those probably aren't even real. She must have gotten surgery before school started so that she wouldn't get mistaken for a guy anymore."

Tsuna didn't really understand half of what was being said but it was pretty obvious a lot of it was meant to be cruel. If she was correct in thinking they were talking about her breasts, well, Tsuna didn't even think her chest was particularly large. Although it was about different things, Tsuna wasn't particularly surprised that even as a girl she was going to get bullied. Some things never change, she thought to herself.

Suddenly, she was turned around by Kyoko, who held Tsuna's hands in her own and said, "Don't listen to them, Tsuna-chan. They're just jealous that you have such a nice body and they're taking it out on you."

"O-okay…" Tsuna replied meekly, feeling unusually fragile. Looking into Kyoko's caring eyes made Tsuna feel better...stronger...more important.

Someone remarked snidely, "Do you think they'll kiss?"

This snapped Tsuna out of her reverie and she pulled her hands out of Kyoko's grasp in order to take off her skirt and put on her gym shirt and shorts. She didn't have a sports bra like Kyoko or some of the other girls so she just kept her bra on.

Eventually she managed to finish changing. Most of the girls had already left. When Tsuna saw that Kyoko was about to leave, she shouted, "Kyoko-chan! Wait!"

Kyoko stepped back into view, holding the edge of the door frame.

"Um...thanks...for earlier," Tsuna said sheepishly.

Kyoko smiled as big as she could and said, "No problem. That's what friends are for."

" _Friends...with Kyoko-chan...maybe being a girl is worth it if it means I get to be friends with her,"_ Tsuna thought to herself, happy to be considered a friend by someone else for the first time in her life. But there was a dark side to that thought. " _Will she still be my friend if she learns I'm not really a girl?"_ Tsuna couldn't bear to think about that so she pushed it down and followed Kyoko out of the classroom.


	4. Chapter 4

Haru Ikari laughed, slapping the table as he tried to catch his breath. "You're telling me that you change into a girl every morning before school so that you can get close to the girl you like?"

Currently in the form of an ordinary female middle school student, Tsunayoshi Sawada tried to protest, "It's not like that! It just kind of happened and it's been two weeks and now I don't know what to do." She tugged on her skirt. "It's like every time I try to go to school as a boy, the universe conspires to get me wet somehow. First it was the sprinklers, then the sudden rain storms, then the old lady with the ladle. And when it isn't something else, you always spray me with water!" Tsuna pouted.

The older boy chuckled, "What can I say? I prefer looking at girls." The freelance ninja was wearing the male uniform for Namimori High School in order to be less conspicuous inside the cafe where he had brought Tsuna. Instead of wearing an eyepatch, he simply kept his right eye hidden under his long bangs.

"But did you have to take us to a maid cafe?" Tsuna asked. Inside _Cafe Latte_ , Tsuna was the only female customer and it was making her feel self-conscious.

"Tsuna- _chan_ , if you want to be a proper teenage boy one day, you will need to be able to appreciate moments like this," Haru said, gazing interestedly at the maid waitress bringing two parfaits for himself and Tsuna.

The waitress did her best to disguise her feelings of contempt and disgust as boy with the long red ponytail paid more attention to her than to his date.

When they were alone again, Haru dipped a long spoon into his fruity parfait and asked, "Other than the obvious, how have you been Tsuna? Anyone trying to kill you or marry you yet?"

Tsuna dropped her spoon, "What?!"

Haru sighed and began to elaborate, "Has anyone challenged you to any duels or matches or fights? Has anyone important to you been kidnapped and/or magically altered in any way?"

"WHAT? Why would anything like that happen?" Tsuna asked on the verge of panic.

"Well, people with Jusenkyo curses tend to have trouble follow them. I was kind of worried because you just seem like a normal kid." Haru took a bite of his parfait and continued, "That's why I wanted to see you fight, to know if you could handle things."

Tsuna looked up from her untouched dessert. "Handle things?"

Haru swung his dessert spoon dexterously with his fingers to point at Tsuna. "Namimori is a more interesting place than I first thought. It seems ordinary at first glance but it feels like there's something going on under the surface." The spoon returned to the tall glass of fruit and cream. "I think I might stick around a while to see if I'm right."

Tsuna poked at her own parfait, a chocolate one with whipped cream. "Am I going to have to live like this for the rest of my life?"

Haru scoffed, "Is being a girl really even that bad? It's not like you got turned into a pig or a duck or anything. You even told me that you're more popular at school now. What are you complaining about?"

Tsuna sunk in her seat until her chin rested upon the table. "But Kyoko-chan...won't ever see me as a guy…"

"Oh!" Haru said smugly. "I think I have an idea then!"

From the table surface, Tsuna warily eyed her insane companion. "Please don't do anything too weird. I've had enough weirdness for one lifetime."

Haru bit a cherry off its stem and said, "It's best to get used to it now otherwise you'll go crazy in the long run."

Tsuna took a bite of her chocolate parfait and took consolation that if nothing else in her life was going right, sweets wouldn't disappoint her.

* * *

"Tsuna-chan!" Kyoko Sasagawa shouted as she ran up the street. "I'm sorry I'm late!"

Tsuna blushed from seeing Kyoko in casual clothes for the first time. "Mah, it's fine, Kyoko-chan."

Kyoko grabbed Tsuna's arm and hugged it tightly. "No, it's not! It was my idea to meet today and it's not fair if I make you wait."

"Ah...ah...It's okay. I only got here a few minutes ago." Tsuna tried not to stare at the girl clinging to her arm so extremely cutely. But Tsuna couldn't help but glance at Kyoko out of the corner of her eye.

"Come on, Tsuna-chan. If we don't hurry, all the best cakes will be gone!" Kyoko said as she pulled Tsuna by the hand.

Tsuna couldn't help but get dragged along by the cheerful girl. Of course, it wasn't a date. It was just two female friends going to eat sweets on a Saturday. Lately, a lot of her diet was becoming more saccharine. Should she worry about gaining weight?

Inside the combination bakery and cafe, Tsuna felt overwhelmed by the variety of choices and decided to watch her expert companion order like a professional.

"I want one of those, and a choco, and a fruit, and a tiramisu roll, and I want one raspberry tart and two cream puffs." Kyoko said rapidly, squatting in front of the glass display and pointing at the morsels within.

"Um, what should I get? Kyoko?" Tsuna asked, still unsure.

"We're going all out today!" Kyoko replied on her way to find a table. "Get one of everything!"

"Uh, I just...that one, I guess?" Tsuna said, pointing at random.

"Excellent choice, Ma'am," the bakery clerk said with a pleasant smile. "I'll bring out your order in a minute."

Tsuna joined Kyoko at one of the cosy tables nearby, a small one with just two seats. Kyoko was rubbing her palms together in anticipation.

"Do you..um, come here often, Kyoko-chan?"

Kyoko put a finger to her chin in thought before cheerfully explaining, "Just once a month. It's my special treat to myself."

"Hey, thanks for inviting me, Kyoko-chan."

"It's no problem, Tsuna-chan," the bubbly girl said with a giggle. "I'm glad I could share something I like with you."

"Here you go, ladies. Please enjoy yourselves," said a male waiter with a tray of baked goods. "And this is a special treat for one of our favorite guests," he said as he placed a slice of purple cake in front of Kyoko.

"Is it supposed to be that color?" Tsuna asked warily. But the waiter had already disappeared and Kyoko was already digging into her suspiciously discolored cake.

"Oh, this is delicious!" Kyoko said.

Tsuna watch in horror as Kyoko turned into a guy but was too engrossed in eating her cake to realize it. "Um...Kyoko…?"

"Hm? Do I have something on my face?" the girl-turned-boy asked. He suddenly realized his voice had changed. Kyoko felt his own body is various places and then asked his friend, "What's going on?"

As a boy, Kyoko didn't look particularly different than before. With brown hair down to his shoulders and big eyes though, his previous cuteness had turned into a pretty boy handsomeness. Luckily, Kyoko had dressed in a boyish style already, with long shorts and a jacket over a t-shirt.

Tsuna could see the waiter who brought Kyoko's order snickering across the cafe. He was definitely suspicious! And why was there water dripping onto the floor by Kyoko? Did someone spill water? Wouldn't someone notice if someone had spilled a glass of water?

The suspicious waiter returned to Tsuna's table and spoke, "Now you two really look like a couple on a date!"

"Haru!" Tsuna cried, recognizing the older boy as wearing a disguise. Without an eyepatch, Haru's green right eye was particularly conspicuous. Tsuna paused for a moment to wonder why the boy bothered wearing an eyepatch at all if there wasn't anything wrong with his eye.

"Honored guest, you've probably noticed that the cake you had was a special cake indeed. It is our limited edition taro-flavored cake. Also, it is infused with a magical spell that grants wishes," waiter Haru lied. "I don't know which of you two wished for it, but until the end of the day, you can experience what it's like to go on a lovey-dovey date!"

"Tsuna, is this what you wanted?" Kyoko asked, sounding disappointed.

"No, no, this isn't what I wanted at all!" Tsuna exclaimed. "I don't even like guys! Oh, no offense, Kyoko-chan."

"Is that so…" Kyoko said, apparently lost in thought for a moment. "I suppose it's okay if it's just for one day. I've always wondered what it would be like to be a boy. I have an older brother and everyone treats him really differently than they treat me."

"You're okay with this?" Tsuna asked incredulously.

Kyoko smiled and replied, "Sure! It sounds like fun! Where do you want to go next on our date?'

At this point, Tsuna realized that Haru had gotten her a date with her crush. Admittedly, it wasn't under the best circumstances. Tsuna would have preferred to be the guy in the relationship. But Tsuna knew from personal experience that the person inside was still the same Kyoko that had treated Tsuna so kindly since middle school began. And this might be Tsuna's only chance to get closer to Kyoko romantically. But Tsuna didn't want Kyoko to be cursed just for being her friend. Haru had gone too far this time!

"Might I suggest an amusement park? I just happen to have two tickets right here for the two of you. And I promise, Sasagawa-san, you'll return to normal tonight with no ill effects afterward. So to the both of you, please enjoy yourselves today."

Tsuna felt a little relieved. Perhaps this wasn't the same thing as what she was cursed with. But it still didn't feel right to force Kyoko to go on a date.

"Oh, that sounds like a great idea! I'm so excited. Let's have lots of fun, Tsuna-chan!" Kyoko said with sparkling eyes as he took hold of Tsuna's hand with both of his.

A rosy color bloomed on Tsuna's face. She was too embarrassed to look Kyoko in the eye. Apparently it wasn't Kyoko, but instead Tsuna herself that was being tricked into going on a date.

Despite an unsettling feeling that something bad was going to happen, Tsuna mustered as much enthusiasm as she could and said, "I'm looking forward to it, Kyoko-chan."

* * *

Outside the amusement park, Kyoko asked Tsuna a question, "Tsuna-chan, am I dreaming right now? I still don't know what's going on. I got turned into a guy and now I'm going on a date with my cute best friend. And you're just going along with it like it's no big deal." Despite everything he had been through, Kyoko tried to give the brightest smile he could but it lacked its usual luster.

"Y-yeah, it's pretty crazy, right?" Tsuna scratched the back of her head.

"You know what's going on, don't you, Tsuna-chan? Will you tell me?"

Something in the back of Tsuna's mind said to tell the truth. It was a feeling that said nothing good will come from lying. But Tsuna didn't know how much truth she should tell Kyoko. Could Kyoko really accept something like magical curses? Much less that Tsuna hadn't...been honest about who she really was. What would Kyoko think if he learned that Tsuna was really a boy? Tsuna saw Kyoko's underwear! Kyoko would never forgive her!

"I don't really understand what's going on either but that guy at the cafe is actually someone I know and I don't think he would actually hurt anyone so I think it's probably okay to believe him when he says everything will go back to normal later. Maybe?" Tsuna offered.

Kyoko's smile faded for a moment. "Oh, I suppose if he was someone you know then I guess I shouldn't worry. I thought I was imagining things because that guy knew my last name even though I never mentioned it. But then...why did I turn into a boy?"

Tsuna looked down at the shoes her mother had picked out for her that morning. "I don't know why he did that. It's probably my fault. I told him that I liked you. NO, wait, I mean, I told him that I liked spending time with you. It's like I don't like you or anything I just meant...I think Haru thought it would be funny to set me up on a d...date with you…" She peeked at the blank look on Kyoko's face. "I know it's hard to believe but he's like some kind of magical sorcerer or something. I'm sorry he put a curse on you because of me!"

Kyoko looked at Tsuna with wide eyes. There was a heavy pause before he said, "I like spending time with you too, Tsuna-chan."

"Eh?"

Kyoko waved the admission tickets in front of Tsuna's face. "Well, we can't let your friend's gift go to waste. Whether this is a dream or not, will you accompany me on a date, Tsuna-chan?"

"Of course, Kyoko-chan!" Tsuna answered ecstatically.

The handsome Sasagawa took the blushing Sawada by the hand. On his face was the same smile that had moved Tsuna's heart only two weeks ago.


	5. Chapter 5

"Tsuna-chan, if you have a magician friend, does that mean you can do magic yourself?" Kyoko asked. The temporary couple had enjoyed an amazing day at the amusement park and had finally decided to head home.

"I wish. My life would be a ton easier if I had magic powers," Tsuna complained. "To be honest, I'm kind of a boring person."

"I don't think that!" Kyoko said as he stepped in front of Tsuna's path. "I could tell you were really interesting from the first time I saw you."

Overcome with embarrassment, Tsuna froze in her tracks and blushed deeply. "And I thought you were really cool and pretty," she managed to whisper.

It was Kyoko's turn to hide his own blush, turning away from the adorable girl in front of her and covering her mouth with her hand.

Still blushing, Kyoko asked, "By the way, Tsuna, can I stay over at your place tonight?"

"W-w-w-what?! I know we're supposed to be on a d-date and you might be curious about what it's like to be a g-guy but you can't be serious?! We're too young for that kind of thing! I mean, isn't that the kind of thing you should only do when you're really dating?"

While the panicking brunette caught her breath, Kyoko tried to explain, "No, no, I mean I can't go home as a boy or else my family would freak out. I figured it would be okay to have a sleepover since we're both really girls."

The thought of having a sleepover with Kyoko-chan just made Tsuna blush harder. "Oh, oh yeah. Since we're both girls…"

* * *

Tsuna opened the door to her house and announced, "I'm home!" She kicked off her shoes and brought out a pair of slippers for herself and Kyoko.

"Welcome home, Tsu-kun!" Nana replied from the kitchen. "Do you have someone with you?"

"Ah, yeah, someone from school. Is it okay if they stay over tonight?" Tsuna shouted.

"Tsuna-chan? A friend from school? Oh, my!" Nana said, rushing out of the kitchen to meet her erstwhile son's friend. After all, this is the first time Tsuna had ever brought a friend from school home to visit. She was surprised by what she found, however. "Tsuna, he's so handsome! I'm Tsuna's mother. Thank you for taking care of my daughter."

"I'm Sasagawa Kyoko, a friend of Tsuna's. Thank you for inviting me into your home."

With the formalities out of the way, Nana couldn't resist the urge to gossip. "So, Sasagawa-san. What are your intentions toward my daughter?"

"I haven't done anything!" Kyoko frantically waved her hands in front of her. "We just went to the amusement park!"

"Oh, ho!" Nana's eyes sparkled with interest. "So you went on a date with my daughter?"

"Um...um...we...kind of?" Kyoko answered hesitantly.

"Did you kiss her?" Nana asked intensely.

"No! I didn't do anything like that!" Kyoko pleaded.

Nana's eyes bored deep into the cowering boy's soul, daring him to answer, "And why not?"

"MOM, you're embarassing meeeeeee!" Tsuna shouted, pushing the woman aside before dragging Kyoko upstairs.

"Kyoko-san, I won't forgive you if you hurt my Tsuna-chan!" Nana shouted happily after the pair.

* * *

"Your room is...kind of messy, Tsuna-chan."

Tsuna hurriedly kicked a bunch of clothes and manga under her bed. "Sorry about this."

"It kind of reminds me of my brother's room," Kyoko said as he sat on Tsuna's bed and looked around. There wasn't anything stereotypically feminine anywhere to be seen. "Those especially. Why are there guys' boxers on the floor?"

"Ah! Those...those are…my cousins!" Tsuna lied.

"Oh, you must be really close with your extended family then. I never really get to see my cousins," Kyoko said, thinking about her own family. "Why are your cousins' boxers on the floor in your room?"

Tsuna dropped to her hands and knees in front of Kyoko and said, "I don't know. Please forgive me."

Kyoko chuckled with his newly deepened voice. "Hahaha, I understand. Sometimes I do babysitting jobs and I find the most random things lying around afterward." He flopped backward onto Tsuna's bed. "Anyways, when do you think I'm going to change back?"

Tsuna sat in her desk chair and spun around. "Um, I think maybe if you take a bath, you'll change back."

Kyoko sat up and crossed his legs. "Oh? Why do you say that?"

Tsuna dropped her face into her hand. "Let's just say that this isn't the first time Haru's done something like this."

"So you do know a bit about magic!" Kyoko exclaimed. "What did your friend do last time?"

A dreadful pallor befell Tsuna's face. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Yikes, it must have been rough," Kyoko said. "At least everything turned out okay, right?"

Tsuna perked up a bit. "So far at least."

"He didn't make you go on a date with him or anything like that, did he?"

"No, no, nothing like that, thankfully," Tsuna reassured Kyoko. "But I do think he likes to tease me a little bit too much."

"Do you think he likes you?" Kyoko asked.

"Absolutely not." Tsuna sighed, "I'm apparently just a source of amusement to him."

Kyoko frowned. "That doesn't sound like a very good friend."

"Still, I have the feeling he was trying to make things up to me, you know, by getting you to go on a date with me," Tsuna explained.

"Is that so?"

Tsuna looked at the ceiling. "I think so, yeah."

"If you wanted to go on a date with me, you could have just asked me yourself."

Tsuna went bug-eyed. "What?! What are you saying, Kyoko-chan?"

"Is it true what you said earlier? That you didn't like guys?"

"Yeah...but..."

"I've always been popular with boys. I've actually been confessed to a dozen times since school started. But to be honest, I've never had good experiences with guys. They're dumb and fight too much and can be kind of scary sometimes. And I thought, maybe, that...it would be better to date a girl instead. That's why I'm glad my first date was with you, Tsuna-chan."

"Kyoko-chan…"

Kyoko was sitting on Tsuna's bed with his knees to his chest and his arms wrapped around his knees. "I guess, I should head into the bath now. But I wanted to ask you, next time we go on a date, can we skip the whole turning into a guy thing? It was kind of fun but there really isn't enough room in girls panties for that...thing...down there and it's been bothering me all day."

Tsuna couldn't help but giggle a bit. And then she realized, "Next time?"

"Unless you don't want to…"

Tsuna stood up instantly. "I do! I want to! I just...I didn't expect that you'd want to also."

Kyoko got off the bed and stood up too. "Why not? I had a really good time today." He gave Tsuna a quick peck on the lips. "And with a kiss from the princess, the spell will be broken, right?"

Kyoko left the dazed Tsuna in her room as he went to the bathroom to change.

* * *

"Sasagawa-san?" Nana Sawada noticed someone leaving the bathroom. Whoever it was, they were wearing the same clothes as the boy Tsuna had brought home earlier. But the person in front of her was obviously female.

Kyoko froze in place, "Um, Sawada-san?"

"Oh! I take it you're like Tsuna-kun then?" Nana asked, jumping to (what seemed to her) the most logical conclusion. "Except you're a girl who turns into a boy, right?"

"What? I don't know what you're talking about," Kyoko replied in confusion.

"There's no need to be shy about it. To be honest, this makes a lot more sense than Tsuna going on a date. He's always been a kind boy but he gets bullied a lot so I was worried about whether he'd ever make friends," Nana said candidly. "I'm happy he's made a friend that he can share his secret with."

"His secret that he turns into a girl and changes back into a boy when he takes a bath?"

"Mm-hm. Please take care of my hapless son," Nana humbly entreated.

"Right, okay. Can you tell Tsuna that I'm going to head home now?"

"Sure thing, Sasagawa-san. And please know you're always welcome in our home," Nana said as Kyoko quickly bowed goodbye and hurriedly put on her shoes and left.

* * *

"So, Tsuna, how was your date?" Haru asked as he sipped a fancy melon soda through a long straw.

"Did you know?" Tsuna asked from across the cafe table.

"Know what?" Haru replied, sounding innocently confused.

Tsuna glared at the older boy. "Did you know that Kyoko-chan liked girls?"

"Who doesn't?" Haru said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Tsuna grudgingly clarified, "I mean...did you know that Kyoko-chan was interested in dating girls?"

"What? Really? I had no idea," Haru said honestly, as far as Tsuna could tell. "I just thought you guys would make a cute couple. Oh, I guess that means your date went really, really well then! Congratulations!"

Tsuna dropped his forehead directly onto the table. Even though he was pretending to be grumpy, the brunet was still giddy on the inside because he was now dating the prettiest girl in school.

Suddenly, Tsuna remembered something that had been bothering him since his date with Kyoko. "Hey, Haru, I was wondering, how come you said Kyoko's curse was only temporary?"

"Oh, that's simple. I used instant Jusenkyo powder instead of the real stuff. You add it to water and then it can cause a one-time transformation. It's pretty useful stuff. Why? Do you want to see your boyfriend again? Hehe."

"No thanks. Kyoko is fine just the way she is," Tsuna said grumpily.

"Just so you know, I'm pretty sure that even if a Jusenkyo curse changes your sex, it won't change your sexual orientation. At least it didn't for me."

"What? You had a Jusenkyo curse?" Tsuna asked.

The older boy with the long, dark red hair took a long, deep breath. "I still have it, actually."

Tsuna managed to close his jaw long enough to ask, "So you turn into a girl?"

"Something like that. But enough about me. When is your next date with Kyoko?"

Tsuna tasted a spoonful of thick chocolate milkshake. For a maid cafe, this place had a great menu. "I dunno. I was thinking of asking her to go to the aquarium with me…"


	6. Chapter 6

"Hey, Mom, there's something I wanted to tell you. Some stuff happened and I ended up going to school as a girl somehow. Anyways...I was hoping...could you help me out with some clothes?" Tsuna asked, rubbing his hands together nervously. "I know I said I didn't want them but…"

Nana's eyes began to fill with tears of joy. "My little boy is growing up into a beautiful young woman!" She took her son into a suffocating embrace.

"Mooommm, it's not like that!" Tsuna whined, trying to escape his mother's clutches. "You're overreacting!"

"You're already dating and wearing your mother's clothes! You're growing up so quickly," Nana proclaimed, wiping a tear from her eye.

Tsuna pried his mother off his body. "No-no-no, it'd be too weird to wear your hand-me-downs, Mom. I was hoping you'd help me pick out some new clothes for me to wear."

Despite being turned down, Nana remained exuberant. "Are you sure? I have this gorgeous pink dress that you'd look amazing in!"

Tsuna waved his hand in front of his face, "Definitely sure."

"I can't wait to show your father what a beautiful girl you turn into!" his mother said excitedly.

"NO!" Tsuna shouted. "I mean, I don't want anyone to know about my curse unless I have to tell them."

"You don't want to tell your father?" Nana asked innocently.

"I'd rather not tell him," Tsuna said in an uncharacteristically dour manner.

"Hm, alright. Let's go shopping tomorrow!"

"Thanks, Mom."

* * *

On Monday, Kyoko was absent from school. Tsuna had wanted to eat lunch with Kyoko but was disappointed to hear that she had stayed home today. So Tsuna was eating her bento alone at her desk when she was approached by a stern-faced girl with long, wavy hair.

The newcomer sat in the chair in front of Tsuna's desk and slammed her hand on Tsuna's desktop. She narrowed her eyes and asked, "What are your intentions with Sasagawa Kyoko?"

Tsuna beat her chest to stop herself from choking on a piece of rolled egg. "Wha?" She cleared her throat and asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Sawada Tsunayoshi, a girl with a monkey's name. And according to my research, she WAS a monkey until she started middle school." The dark-haired girl glared daggers into Tsuna's bewildered eyes. "So what exactly is a monkey pretending to be a girl trying to do to Kyoko?"

"Isn't that Kyoko right over there?" Tsuna pointed toward the doorway. As soon as the intimidating girl turned to look, Tsuna bolted from her seat and dashed out the rear door of the classroom.

The girl growled in anger. "No monkey makes a fool of Kurokawa Hana."

* * *

Hana eventually cornered the brunette on the roof after following a trail of scattered handouts, spilled mop water, and ruined cookies home economics. Being an innately clumsy person who was scared out of her wits, Tsuna had crashed into quite a few people in her rush to escape the terrifying girl. From the looks of it, Tsuna had collided with at least one fully loaded lunch tray judging from the stains on her uniform and in her hair.

"Did you really think you'd get away with pretending to be a girl just to get close to Kyoko?" Hana asked calmly. Her breathing was even but her knuckles were white from clenching her fists in anger.

"N-n-n-no! I'm n-not pretending!" Tsuna stuttered as she slowly backed away.

Hana yanked down Tsuna's skirt with both hands, revealing a pair of blue boxer shorts. "Then how do you explain this?!"

Tsuna screamed like a girl and tried to cover up her lower half with her hands. "It's not what you think!"

"And what about these?!" Hana said, squeezing Tsuna's left breast. The dark-haired girl's face distorted from a state of anger to a expression of perplexity. She squeezed it a couple more times with her fingers to make sure of what she was feeling.

"Um, excuse me, that feels kind of weird…" Tsuna squeaked out, feeling somewhat embarrassed and violated.

Hana had a faraway look on her face. After a moment of contemplation, she pulled open the front of Tsuna's boxers with her finger and peered down the waistband for a good five seconds, finding nothing.

Finally, Tsuna had enough sexual harassment and pushed the offending girl away. "I told you! I'm not pretending!"

"You...are a girl…"

Tsuna blushed and said, "Yeah, I guess," while rubbing the back of her head.

Hana managed to regain some of her wits and asked, "Then what did you do with Kyoko? She said she was going to go to eat some sweets with someone from school and then she disappeared…"

"What do you mean? Did something happen to her?" Tsuna asked. "She seemed fine the last time I saw her after our date…" Realizing what she said, Tsuna covered her mouth.

"A date? With you? You must be crazy. There's no way that Kyoko would ever go on a date a good-for-nothing like you. I mean, she's been turning down guys for years…" Hana paused before beginning to question herself, "Wait...no way...with you?"

Tsuna tugged on her hair shyly. "It seemed like she was enjoying herself."

The intimidating girl got a look of disgust on her face like Tsuna was a giant pile of dog poo. "And what is THAT supposed to mean?"

The smaller female backed up a few more steps to put some distance between the two of them. "We went to an amusement park and she seemed to like going on the rides and stuff…" With a clang, Tsuna had backed into the chain link fence on the edge of the roof. She looked behind her shoulder and said, "Isn't that Kyoko down there right now?"

"Don't expect the same trick to work on me twice," Hana warned impassively.

"No, really! It's Kyoko," Tsuna said, pointing to the girl walking onto the school grounds. The sparkly school idol was accompanied by a taller red-headed boy.

Eyeing Tsuna warily, Hana stepped to the side and gripped the fence while she scanned the grounds to find her friend. "Oh, it really is Kyoko." She waved and shouted to try to get her attention. "Kyoko! I'm up here!"

While Kurokawa was distracted, Tsuna decided that she could probably sneak away. Unfortunately, the clumsy girl ended up tripping over the skirt around her ankles and tumbled into Hana, who was then pushed into the rusty guard fence which shuddered snapped under her weight.

Before Tsuna could react, the girl had already disappeared off the roof with an ear-piercing scream. Sure, the strange girl had been scary but Tsuna definitely did not mean to murder her.

Swallowing her fear, Tsuna carefully looked over the edge of the school roof. On the ground, Hana was being carried in the arms of a familiar teenage boy who was disguised as a high school student visiting his old middle school.

Haru looked up at the girl on the roof and shouted, "Did you drop this, Tsuna?"

* * *

Back inside the classroom, the four of them sat around Tsuna's desk as lunch neared its end. They had just enough time to finish their lunches and sort things out.

"I just wanted to ask Tsuna's friend some questions. Sorry for worrying you, Hana-chan," Kyoko explained.

"So, _Haru-kun_ , what brings you around here?" Hana asked dreamily. Kyoko's dark haired friend was making lovey-dovey eyes at Tsuna's older male friend. The object of Hana's affection was making a bored face and propping up his chin with his hand.

"I was just escorting Sasagawa-san to school. Besides, I wanted to see what Tsuna's school was like." The older teen stood up to leave. "I think it's time for me to go. Your lunch is almost over, right?"

"It's a good thing you came, Haru. If it weren't for you, Kyoko's friend could have gotten really hurt," Tsuna said.

"You should be careful, Tsuna. I won't always be there to bail you out next time," Haru admonished. Responding to a wave of killing intent, the trained ninja suddenly called out, "Show yourself!" He stared at the door of the classroom with a serious grimace.

The door slid open and a boy with the disciplinary committee's badge around his arm was glaring at the uncharacteristically terse visitor.

"You are not supposed to be here," the second year prefect said. Three pairs of eyes turned toward the boy with the dark red hair.

The shinobi masquerading as a high school student easily stopped Kyoya's tonfa with one hand, catching it mid-swing like a parent grabbing a child's toy. "Alright, I'm going." He then blocked a vicious kick with one of Tsuna's textbooks. "Yo, there's no need for that."

Tsuna shouted, "Guys, stop fighting!" while waving her hands frantically.

Haru backflipped twice across a couple student desks, putting space between him and his assailant. He stretched his arms out casually as if preparing to do some routine exercise. "The disciplinary committee is really passionate in this school."

"I'm also the student council president," the infamous Kyoya Hibari spoke. Hibari used his leg to launch a chair at the older boy in order to distract him and let himself get within melee range. But both of his tonfa met nothing but air. "Interesting," he said with a sadistic grin.

"You're not half bad yourself," Haru replied. He dodged all of Hibari's attacks with minimal effort. "I'd feel bad beating up a kid though."

"Oh, then I suppose you won't mind if I let myself go all out." Hibari's movements became more and more vicious. Some of his blows had the potential to permanently wound or kill an ordinary person.

"Man, you really like going for the face, don't you?" Haru remarked. Unwilling to retaliate, Haru had slowly begun to lose ground. He found himself backed into the corner of the room when the school bell rang, signalling the end of lunch time.

"Any last words?" Kyoya asked, spinning the tonfa in his right hand at violent speeds.

Haru snapped his finger in front of Kyoya's face, casting an illusion that caused Kyoya to go unconscious. The older boy gently laid the younger boy into one of the desk chairs and climbed onto the windowsill. "See you later, Tsuna, Sasagawa-san. It was nice to meet you, Hana-chan," he said before jumping out the window.

"There's always something interesting happening when I'm with you, Tsuna-chan. Anyways, how about next week Hana-chan, you, and I go to get some sushi?" Kyoko suggested happily.

"That would be great, Kyoko-chan," Tsuna said in a daze.

With hearts in her eyes, Hana commented to herself, "He was so cool…"


	7. Chapter 7

"So, Kyoko-chan, are you really going out with Sawada? There are a ton of monkeys in this school that would jump at the chance to go out with you. I always figured you could do better than...her."

"Hey! Tsuna-chan is a perfectly nice...person. And it was just one time. But I guess I wouldn't mind going on another date with her."

"I didn't know you swung that way. Not that it really bothers me."

"It's not really that I'm attracted to girls. It's just that every time a boy confesses to me, it just never feels right. I always remember that time that my big brother got hurt protecting me and I just get kind of scared. But I don't feel that way around Tsuna-chan. And I had a lot of fun with her last week."

"Frankly, I don't see the appeal whatsoever. She's clumsy enough to trip on her own feet while standing still. And she's never gotten a single question right during class."

"I was clumsy too when I was younger!"

"That was when you were 8 years old. Sawada is a completely different level of uncoordinated."

"I guess so. But I don't think that makes her a bad person."

"What about me? I think I'd probably make a better girlfriend than Sawada."

"You're my best friend, Hana. Of course I like hanging out with you. But when I'm with Tsuna, it's like nothing I've ever felt before. It's not just the excitement of trying new things but also, Tsuna is… accepting. I feel like I could tell her anything and she would listen and it wouldn't change what she thought of me one bit."

Except there was a pang of guilt inside Kyoko as she realized she was afraid of asking who Tsunayoshi Sawada really was.

"Fine, if you want to date another girl, I'm okay with that. I never thought you'd turn out to be a lesbian, Kyoko."

"Noooo, I told you, it's not like that! Tsuna is just a special case!"

"Well, if you ever want to come out of the closet, just know that I'm here for you and we'll always be friends."

Kyoko blushed and pouted in mock protest. Then she suddenly gave Hana a big hug and said, "Thanks for everything, Hana."

"You're still too good for her, Kyoko."

Kyoko bopped Hana on the head with a gentle karate chop. "Don't be too hard on Tsuna. If you give her a chance, you might find that she isn't as bad as you think. Besides, if I do end up dating her, no one is allowed to make fun of my girlfriend."

"You're such a sap."

"So are you, Hana."

* * *

Thursday evening, there was a dreadful rain in Namimori. Two gunshots rang out, followed by a mass cawing of crows and then four more peals of gunfire.

Haru Ikari, displaced shinobi of Konoha, tumbled backward over the railing of his Namimori safehouse. He fell for less than two seconds before crashing into the roof of a parked car. His favored black coat, an allusion to a video game he had played in a previous life, was punctured clean through in half a dozen places. The blood leaking from the wounds was turning the rainwater pink.

From the third floor balcony, Haru could see the silhouette of his assailant adjusting a wide-brimmed hat. He had already set his chakra to begin mending the wounds but he was not in a condition to fight back. The unknown assassin had shot Haru before the ninja even had the chance to create a crow clone to replace himself with. All the boy could do was twist his body to prevent any of his vital organs from being hit. He could operate with a single lung for the time being.

Haru dug the fingers of his left hand into the roof of the car and wrapped the sheared metal around himself like a cocoon. Knowing that wouldn't stop gunfire on it own, he strengthened it with his chakra to give himself enough time to run through a few hand seals. It was a good decision because another six bullets embedded themselves into the makeshift cover.

The explosive seals etched into the walls of the apartment all detonated at once. Haru hoped the shockwave would be enough to slow down the attacker. He knew better than to rely on illusions against high level opponents. Instead, he sent a trio of miniature fire-natured Rasengans to hunt down the enemy assassin while launching ninja wire into a nearby rooftop to make a speedy escape.

The ninja wire was reeled into the custom storage seals on his wrists at such high velocity as to send Haru flying into the air like Spiderman. He landed in a painful tumble due to his chest muscles not working properly but at least he had managed to put a couple building between him and his assailant.

"Who did I piss off this time?" the dark red-haired boy coughed out. He wiped some blood from his lips. It would be about ten minutes or so before his body was back in working order, minus some chakra. This was certainly not the work of any youma or youkai, who would have been the only parties upset with his part time demon hunting job.

Clutching his chest, he staggered away at a brisk pace to find a safe place to lay low for a while.

* * *

The World's Greatest Hitman was unhappy. An unknown faction was attempting to ingratiate themselves with his future ward. It was evident from the way the teenager moved that he was a trained killer. Not only that, as soon as his presence was detected, Reborn had felt a level of killing intent that only the most jaded of hitmen could accomplish.

Flipping open a green cellular phone, Reborn gave a curt, "Target escaped," before snapping it closed and stuffing it into his tiny baby-sized suit. "Tsch."

He would track down this mysterious threat and eliminate it. But in the meantime, Reborn needed to figure out why Tsunayoshi Sawada was going to school dressed as a girl.

* * *

Ding, dong! The doorbell of the Sawada residence rang in the middle of the evening after dinner. A fully male Tsuna answered the door and was surprised to see his older friend Haru standing outside his door, soaked to the bone with frigid rain.

"Yo, Tsuna, can I crash here for a little while? I need to get some repairs done on my apartment and you're the only one I know who lives anywhere nearby." The older boy was dressed in a plain black t-shirt and jeans. Haru's traditional ponytail was undone and being too annoyed and tired to do anything but grimace, he looked vaguely like a drowned cat.

"Tsu-kun? Who's at the door?" Nana asked from the living room.

"Um, it's just a friend of mine," Tsuna said.

"Oh! A friend?" Nana spoke as she walked toward the door, "Aren't you going to let them in?"

"I guess you can come inside…" Tsuna reluctantly decided.

"Thanks. Who's this, Tsuna? Your mom?" Haru asked, kicking off a pair of damp sneakers.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Sawada Nana, Tsunayoshi's mother," Nana said with a bow.

Haru returned the gesture, "Ikari Haru. Thank you for inviting me into your home."

"Tsu-kun, your friend is very well behaved," Nana said with a smile.

The older teenager spoke while gently wringing water from his hair, "So yeah, basically my apartment burned down and I need a place to stay for a while. Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt."

"You poor dear! Of course you can stay here as long as you need to!" Nana exclaimed. "Now go take a bath while I fix you something to eat."

"Thank you, Sawada-san and Tsuna. I really appreciate this," Haru said. "Now which way is the bathroom?"

"It's the last door on the right. And Tsuna-kun, can I get your help in the kitchen please?"

When the older teenager was happily bathing upstairs, Nana asked her son, "Does he know about Tsuna-chan?"

"Oh, yeah, mom. He's kinda been helping me with that," Tsuna said fidgeting slightly.

"That's good! I'm glad you have a friend you can trust," Nana said as she pulled some wrapped leftovers out of the fridge. "Oh, by the way, I almost forgot to tell you. When I told you father about your first test results of the year, he said we should get a tutor for you! Luckily, there was a flyer in our mailbox."

She presented her son with a flyer that said "Will raise your child to be the leader of the next generation! Any subject, any grade!"

"Mom, I don't need a tutor!" Tsuna vehemently objected, staring at the ridiculous advertisement.

"I was hoping you would get more serious about your studies after getting into middle school. But if your tests are already this bad before getting a girlfriend, well, they're only going to get worse now that you have less time for studying."

Tsuna just put his hands on his temples and squeezed as hard as he could while shaking his head in a futile attempt to stave off an oncoming headache.

Nana suddenly had an epiphany. "This Ikari-kun isn't also your boyfriend, is he?"

"NO."

* * *

Later that evening, a terrified feminine scream pierced the walls of the Sawada household. It had originated from the upstairs bath.

Tsuna was sitting in the furo, up to her neck in satisfyingly hot water, yet was still inexplicably female. Ordinarily, hot water would change Tsuna back into a guy (along with his clothes if he happened to be wearing any at the time) but this temporary fix had suddenly stopped working as of tonight.

There was a knock on the bathroom door.

"Oi, Tsuna, did you happen to use my soap that I left in the bathroom?" Haru asked from outside the bathroom. "Cause, see, I use this special soap and I forgot to mention that if you happened to use it while you were in your cursed form then you wouldn't be able to change back for a while."

The door slammed open and Tsuna, wrapped only in a large towel, looked up at the taller boy with fiery female rage in her eyes. "Define 'a while.'"

"It should only be a few days or so…" Haru said with his hands up in the air, trying to be as non-threatening as possible. He had been on the receiving end of his fair share of mallets back in the day.

The almost naked, almost 14 year old girl glared angrily at the older teen. Tsuna was shapely enough that if Haru didn't have specific reservations about not dating anyone under 18, then Haru would have been tempted to get a better look at what the towel wasn't covering.

That didn't stop Tsuna's mother from commenting though, "It certainly looks like you two are dating," as she stood at the end of the hallway. "I hope you're not cheating on Kyoko-chan!"

The female Tsuna slammed the bathroom door shut and considered drowning herself in the furo.


End file.
